Analysis of Theme and Essential Elements of "I Stand Here Ironing"
The theme of "I Stand Here Ironing" is essentially Emily's mothers' responsibility for Emily's upbringing vs. Society's responsibility - Who's fault is it that Emily has had such a troubled life and continues to experience difficulties as an adult, and, what's the point of addressing that now? Since the story comes to us from the mother's point of view (the first person), it is skewed with bias. It is almost as if the mother can't (or won't) see what a poor job she has done raising Emily.
On the one hand, the mother's pain…
